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  • ESPN.com staff

Nov 21, 2023, 07:00 AM ET

Ah, Thanksgiving weekend, when the family gathers around the table and digs into a smorgasbord of traditional family dishes that instantly take us back in time by way of taste, smell and the memories to which those sensations are forever connected.

But it is also Rivalry Week, when college football contests involving teams and fan bases who do not particularly like each other find themselves in the midst of a similar holiday experience. When the sights, sounds and sensory overload of being inside a college football stadium also open the doors to the deepest recesses of our memory banks.

And then there is that region in between, where the truly bizarre and barely explainable kick-start the strangest of recollections. You know, like that casserole your Aunt Edith uncovers that leaves the family to spend the rest of the afternoon wondering WTH was baked in that CorningWare.

Or that jersey number being worn by the guy four rows in front of you, in the colors of thine enemy, that spawns stories of seething spitefulness that could only be born in the bizarro world of college football.

Or Aunt Edith’s ice box.

Or when her sister, Aunt Connie, gets into the sherry and starts spinning yarns about your parents that you’ve never heard before. Especially that one about them during Rivalry Week back in the day when they helped steal State U’s mascot.

The untold stories. The ones that give our lives — and college football — a little extra. That’s what we’re here to share with you. The untold stories, little-known details and forgotten tidbits that make Rivalry Week so special. Slow cooked to perfection over all these years. Like Aunt Edith’s casserole. — Ryan McGee

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Ohio State’s double-bird man
Bad blood between the hedges
Playing for the platypus
Deeper than hate

Buckeyes’ double-bird man

Ohio State at Michigan, Saturday, noon ET, Fox

Marcus Hall knew all about the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry long before he became a member of the Buckeyes.

A Cleveland native, Hall could recount the star players, the Woody Hayes-Bo Schembechler battles, the gold pants tradition and the spiciest moments, like the fight between Ohio State’s David Boston and Michigan’s Charles Woodson in 1997. After signing with Ohio State, Hall couldn’t wait to be part of college football’s highest-profile series.

Ten years ago, he unexpectedly carved a place in Ohio State-Michigan lore — with two fingers.

The 2013 game pitted the third-ranked Buckeyes, 11-0 that season and 23-0 overall under coach Urban Meyer, against a 7-4 Michigan team at Ann Arbor. Hall, a fifth-year senior, was Ohio State’s starting right guard. He had started the previous season against Michigan, helping the Buckeyes to a win that capped a perfect first season under Meyer (the team was ineligible for postseason play).

“I was nervous as heck, but playing in that game, it’s like, ‘OK, I’m officially a Buckeye,'” Hall said. “That’s like your stamp.”

Hall couldn’t wait for his final go-round in The Game. He remembers the trip up to Michigan and hanging out with quarterback Braxton Miller and his other close friends on the team. The pregame atmosphere was “intense,” as the teams exchanged words in the stadium tunnel.

After Michigan took the lead early in the second quarter, Ohio State’s Dontre Wilson returned a kickoff and was tackled, only to get up surrounded by Wolverines. Pushes and punches ensued, and within seconds, players from both sidelines had entered the field as flags flew.

“I thought it was a bench-clearing brawl,” Hall said. “I’m like, ‘I’m definitely going on this field to protect my guys.’ I was an offensive lineman. That’s naturally what we do. I wasn’t going to be the only guy not out there.”

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Marcus Hall’s infamous salute to Michigan fans

In 2013, Marcus Hall added to the OSU-Michigan rivalry lore by giving a double-finger salute to Michigan fans after getting ejected from the game.

The fracas turned out to be much tamer than Hall thought and was extinguished within seconds. But after a long huddle by the officiating crew, referee Mike Cannon announced the penalties, including three ejections: Michigan’s Royce Jenkins-Stone, Ohio State’s Wilson and, the last to be called, Hall.

Just like that, Hall’s career in the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry was over.

“I didn’t hear anybody in the crowd, I didn’t hear anything,” Hall said. “All I was thinking was, ‘It’s my senior year. I’ve looked forward to my senior year playing Michigan for so long.’ The energy and preparation that goes into that game, you’re so invested in that game. For it to end before halftime, I just blew up.”

As ABC cameras followed him, Hall threw his helmet down on the Ohio State sideline, kicked a bench and then pumped his fist in anger. Then, as he turned into the stadium tunnel, he raised both of his middle fingers toward the Big House crowd.

“I compare it to, when you’re fed up on the job and it’s time to go, just let ’em fly,” Hall said.

Hall’s double bird would become the most memorable moment from the game, which Ohio State won 42-41 after intercepting a 2-point conversion pass attempt with 32 seconds left to ward off a furious Michigan rally. Other than the ejection itself, Hall said the worst part of his day was having to stew in the visitors locker room, which had no TVs and lousy cell phone reception.

Stan Jefferson, Ohio State’s director of player development, accompanied Hall and tried to calm him down. Hall kept his uniform on until the fourth quarter before showering.

“My adrenaline was still going,” he said. “I was trying to walk out the locker room and see what was going on, but they kept directing me back in. All I could hear were the oohs and ahhs and cheers from the crowd. That just had me on edge.”

Hall tried to track the game on his phone, which began buzzing with notifications as soon as he got back to the locker room. The middle-finger moment had gone viral.

Although his parents weren’t at Michigan Stadium, his uncle and aunt, who had never seen him play and aren’t big sports fans, showed up that day.

“They’re the most polite, great people, religious,” Hall recalled, laughing. “After the game, I talked to them and they’re like blown away, like, ‘Oh my God, we’ve never seen you act like that. Are you OK?’ I had to calm them down, let them know I just had a moment.”

Hall had never been kicked out of a game before. There had been some fights, but mostly in practice. He received a public reprimand from the Big Ten and did not start in the league championship game the following week. His parents were supportive, although they said he had to control his anger.

The double-bird image immediately gained traction. T-shirts were made showing Hall’s gesture, but since it was the pre-NIL days, he couldn’t profit. Hall’s attorney later contacted the company making the shirts and obtained a percentage of sales for Hall. Eventually, Hall made his own shirts, complete with his signature at the bottom “to make it more authentic.” He said he also signed “a lot of pictures” showing his salute.

Demand was high initially, and Hall still sells quite a few T-shirts around this time every year.

“It was a big moment in the rivalry,” he said.

Hall, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent and later played in the CFL, worked in sales after his playing career. He lives in the Columbus area, where he has worked with youth in group homes and is trying to become a firefighter. Hall tailgates at Ohio State games with former teammates like Miller and Christian Bryant. He’s considering making the trip to Ann Arbor for Saturday’s showdown, 10 years after his notable ejection.

“It wasn’t the best thing for me, but I can be humble and say that rivalry and everything that goes into it, it’s bigger than me,” Hall said. “It’s been here way before me and it’s going to be here way after me. Just to have a piece in that, I’m thankful. I started more than 30 games at Ohio State, but if my legacy has got to live on through the rivalry that way, I’m cool with that.” — Adam Rittenberg

Bad blood between the hedges

Georgia at Georgia Tech, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC

Given the trajectory of the Georgia and Georgia Tech football programs the past several years, it might be difficult to remember the Bulldogs lost to the Yellow Jackets at home in 2016, coach Kirby Smart’s first season.

After the Yellow Jackets rallied from a 13-point deficit in the second half and won 28-27 on Qua Searcy’s 6-yard run and the ensuing extra-point kick with 30 seconds left in the regular-season finale, many Tech players — as had become something of a tradition — celebrated by taking home a souvenir from the famous hedges surrounding the playing field at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

Shortly thereafter, then-Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity and then-Tech counterpart Todd Stansbury agreed the damage needed to stop. Bulldogs players had been retaliating by taking home chunks of the natural-grass turf at Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium.

The rivalry, long known as “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate,” was getting a little ugly when it came to vandalizing stadiums.

“It was back and forth between the hedges and the turf at Tech,” McGarity told ESPN last week. “We called each other and said the time to deface each other’s facility needs to come to an end. We both agreed it needed to stop. Kirby was adamant that we don’t do that anymore, that’s not going to happen. It didn’t help the rivalry at all. All it did was add fuel to the fire.”

Tech players had been taking home parts of UGA’s hedges going back to a 35-18 victory over the Bulldogs on Dec. 1, 1984. Yellow Jackets quarterback John Dewberry, a transfer from Georgia, broke off a piece of the Chinese privet hedges and clenched it between his teeth for photographers.

Tech players haphazardly pruned the hedges six more times over the next 32 seasons, including in 2016, when the hedges were especially damaged.

“They were mangled,” said McGarity, now president and CEO of Gator Bowl Sports in Jacksonville, Florida. “Because it was the last game of the season, it didn’t do permanent damage. Those hedges grow back so fast. It was just the symbolic gesture of defacing them. I’m sure Tech was frustrated when Georgia players dug up some of the natural turf on their field.”

Georgia has security officers protecting the exterior of the hedges from visiting fans who might want a souvenir, but McGarity said he didn’t think it was a good idea to have officers surrounding the interior perimeter.

“You didn’t want to have a situation where law enforcement was getting involved with players,” McGarity said. “That would be the story the next day. We more or less protected the exterior from the fans. That’s what we focused on — preventing fans from damaging the hedges because we could control that.”

Of course, beating the Yellow Jackets at home solves the problem for the Bulldogs. Georgia has won 18 of the past 21 games in the rivalry going into Saturday’s game in Atlanta. The Bulldogs have also won each of their past 25 games at Sanford Stadium, the longest active home winning streak in the SEC. — Mark Schlabach

Playing for the platypus

Oregon State at Oregon, Friday, 8:30 p.m., Fox

The front page of the Eugene Register-Guard on Nov. 20, 1959, trumpeted two new additions to the festivities surrounding the next day’s football game between Oregon and rival Oregon State. It was also homecoming weekend, and about 50 freshmen from what was then called Oregon State College planned a run from Corvallis to Eugene, though it’s not clear if they made the whole 40-plus-mile trek.

The second addition was the unveiling of a rivalry trophy.

“Other traditional college rivals have ‘little brown jugs’ or ‘old oaken buckets,’ but there has never been a trophy for the UO-OSC ‘civil war,'” Richard Baker wrote in the newspaper.

So, naturally, the Platypus Trophy — “with the head and bill of a duck and the tail of a beaver” — filled the void. Oregon student Warren Spady sculpted the trophy from maple, and for three years, it was awarded to the winner of the game: Oregon State in 1959 and 1961; Oregon in 1960.

And then, like that, it was gone.

For four decades, the Platypus Trophy faded from public consciousness. Legend has it that it was stolen in the early ’60s and reappropriated as a water polo trophy. Spady told the Register-Guard in 2007 that in 1986 he saw the trophy in a glass case at Oregon’s Leighton Pool, but the full route of its journey following Oregon State’s football win in 1961 is best left to the imagination.

It wasn’t until 2004, thanks to a column from John Canzano, writing for the Oregonian, that the trophy’s existence was thrust back into the public eye. Like the Register-Guard story from 45 years earlier, Canzano’s column noted the rare lack of a trophy for a college football rivalry game, only for him to be informed after publication that once upon a time one did exist. And it still might.

So, in the same year “National Treasure” hit theaters, the search was on. The trophy was finally located in 2005 in a storage closet, and since 2007 has been entrusted to the winning school’s alumni association for safekeeping after every Oregon-Oregon State football game.

On Oregon’s student alumni association website, the Platypus Trophy is described as “a symbol of pride and a long-forgotten history for the Civil War games.” The website also says, “As every Duck knows — Whether you live in Eugene or in New York, the Oregon State Beavers will always be our rival.”

Headed into this week’s game, with Oregon set to depart for the Big Ten and Oregon State left with an uncertain future, the Platypus Trophy is more representative of what college football used to be: a quirky, regional sport that connected generations.

It seems those days are just about over. — Kyle Bonagura

Deeper than hate

Georgia Southern at Appalachian State, Saturday, 3:30 p.m., ESPNU

Georgia Southern and Appalachian State first met on a football field in 1932. Or maybe it was 1934. It depends on where you look. Someone forgot to write it down. Which is even more hilarious when one realizes the schools were then known as South Georgia Teachers College and Appalachian State Teachers College.

Today, their rivalry has become one of the platforms upon which the league of true regional bile, the Sun Belt Conference, has been built.

One year ago, GSU outlasted App State 51-48 in a contest that produced more than 1,100 yards and a dozen lead changes. On Halloween night 2019, the 4-3 Eagles stunned Eliah Drinkwitz’s No. 20 and New Year’s Six-dreaming Mountaineers with a 24-21 win in Boone, North Carolina. There has been a quartet of games in which the No. 1-ranked FCS team was upset. There was GSU over ASU in 2007, just seven weeks after App State’s legendary defeat of Michigan. There was even a game in 2015 that was interrupted by a laser pointer from the stands, a fire alarm in a dorm adjacent to Kidd Brewer Stadium and a stolen ambulance.

But the roots of the title that has been bestowed upon this series — “A Feeling Deeper Than Hate” — reach back to Dec. 5, 1987, the schools’ first post-World War II meeting. It was the FCS (then I-AA) quarterfinals. The Eagles were the two-time defending national champions, coached by College Football Hall of Famer Erk Russell, who earned national notoriety as Georgia’s defensive coordinator under Vince Dooley. Erk was the godfather of the legendary Junkyard Dawgs and left Athens for Statesboro to help Georgia Southern restart its program. Using the brain inside his famous bald head (which he routinely headbutted his helmeted players with, leaving a trail of blood trickling down his face at kickoff), Russell won quickly, posting a pair of 13-2 seasons that led to those nattys.

When Georgia Southern arrived in Boone for the second round of the NCAA I-AA playoffs in 1987, the Eagles were greeted by an 11-2 Mountaineers team helmed by future South Carolina head coach Sparky Woods. They were also greeted by snow. A lot of snow. And under that powder was a totally frozen playing field.

For three hours, both teams slipped and slid, but App State found better footing at home and pulled off a 19-0 win. App State students rubbed ice into the wound during the second half when they used their boots and gloves to inscribe a snowy hill overlooking one end zone with a message: CAN YOU SCORE?

A group of angry Southern fans stormed the hill and ignited a snowcapped brawl. When police intervened, one officer pulled a move worthy of the “Home Alone” Wet Bandits on the cellar stairs, lost his footing and slid down the hill to crash into a sideline fence.

It was the only time Russell, who added a third and final national title in 1989, ever coached against Appalachian State. Even now, after all these years and all the games the Eagles and Mountaineers have played, through FCS playoffs, the Southern Conference and now the FBS and the Sun Belt, App State fans still love to irk GSU loyalists by grinding up that Erk stat. Meanwhile, every few years Georgia Southern fans still file petitions to the NCAA to have that 1987 Ice Bowl reclassified as a hockey game. — Ryan McGee

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The Polar Bear in Boston? A return to Queens? Potential free agent fits for Pete Alonso

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November 22, 2025

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The Polar Bear in Boston? A return to Queens? Potential free agent fits for Pete Alonso

  • Jorge CastilloNov 21, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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      ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.

NEW YORK — A year after discovering teams across Major League Baseball did not deem him worthy of a lengthy contract, Pete Alonso is back on the free agent market searching for long-term love again.

In February, after an extended standoff, Alonso settled for a two-year, $54 million deal to return to the New York Mets with an opt-out after the 2025 season. He was paid $30 million for this year and posted numbers good enough to make opting out the clear choice. And Alonso didn’t waste time, announcing that was his plan minutes after the Mets lost their final regular-season game against the Miami Marlins to fall short of the playoffs.

His chances of finding a long-term partner are higher this time around for a few reasons. The first one is clear: He’s coming off a significantly stronger campaign. Alonso had his worst season in 2024, slashing .240/.329/.459 with 34 home runs. That, in a vacuum, was good production. But it was his fourth straight season with declining numbers — an alarming pattern considering Alonso was about to turn 30 and didn’t add value on defense or the basepaths.

The metrics suggested Alonso was still one of the worst defensive first basemen in baseball in 2025 — his minus-9 defensive runs saved and minus-9 outs above average both ranked 18th out of 18 qualified first basemen — but he rebounded in the batter’s box. With an adjusted swing and approach, Alonso hit the ball harder — his 93.5 mph average exit velocity was a career high — and the production followed.

He slashed .272/.347/.524 with 38 home runs and 126 RBIs mostly hitting behind Juan Soto. His 141 wRC+ was tied for the second-largest output of his career. He set the franchise record for career home runs, further solidifying his place as one of the most beloved Mets in recent history.

Also of note: Alonso played in all 162 games for the second consecutive season and has appeared in 1,008 of the Mets’ 1,032 regular-season games since debuting in 2019. He has started 993 of those games at first base, 60 at DH.

Over that span, his 264 career home runs rank third in baseball behind only Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber, a fellow free agent. Alonso is durable and consistent.

Then there’s the market. Alonso and Schwarber are the two premier power bats available in free agency this offseason. At first base, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s decision to sign a 14-year, $500 million extension with Toronto in April removed Alonso’s stiffest positional competition. Josh Naylor is a tier below — and a different player with less power but better defensively and on the bases — and Seattle wasn’t going to spend the necessary money for Alonso, but the Mariners retaining their first baseman nevertheless removes an option at the position for other clubs.

Add it up and Alonso should find a deal in the range of four to five years. The question is where. Here are a few possible landing spots for the five-time All-Star, starting with his three most aggressive suitors so far, including the only team he has ever known.

Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said last week that he would “love” to bring back Alonso and closer Edwin Diaz, another All-Star free agent. Alonso’s stated willingness to serve as a designated hitter, at least in a part-time capacity, doesn’t hurt as the Mets prioritize improving a defense that regressed in 2025.

“He’s clearly a really good offensive player,” Stearns said at the GM meetings in Las Vegas. “And I think for any team the ability to get his bat in the lineup in multiple ways is helpful. And it’s great to know that Pete is open to stuff like that.”

But the Mets’ top offseason priority is pitching — in the rotation and the bullpen — and they have internal options for first base and DH in the short and long term. Mark Vientos, Brett Baty and Jeff McNeil could play first base. Juan Soto, after a poor defensive year in right field, will eventually see time at DH. Further, Stearns’ unwillingness to give Alonso what he wanted last winter indicates he prefers not to make that level of investment in him.

The Mets haven’t had someone other than Alonso start at first base on Opening Day since Adrián González began a 54-game cameo to conclude his career in 2018. A year later, Alonso debuted and went on to club 54 home runs en route to being named National League Rookie of the Year. He became a fan favorite in Queens over his seven seasons. But he could find himself in another uniform in 2026.

First base production in 2025: .244/.305/.386, 16 HR, 86 wRC+, -0.7 fWAR

Primary first basemen: Abraham Toro (57 starts), Romy Gonzalez (41), Triston Casas (27), Nathaniel Lowe (26)

Designated hitter production in 2025: .272/.361/.465, 26 HR, 125 wRC+, 2.5 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: Rafael Devers (73), Masataka Yoshida (44), Rob Refsnyder (18), Roman Anthony (17)

Most of Boston’s DH production last season came from Devers before he was traded in June. First base was a major problem beginning with Casas’ slow start and exacerbated when he was lost for the season with a knee injury in early May. The logical choice to replace him — Devers — refused the assignment, which led to Boston shipping him to San Francisco.

Toro, Gonzalez and Lowe, who was signed in August, handled the duty for the remainder of the season. Toro was designated for assignment in August. Lowe met the same fate Tuesday.

The Red Sox president of baseball operations, Craig Breslow, has made it clear: He wants to acquire an accomplished middle-of-the-order bat, preferably a right-handed one. Trading Devers, combined with Alex Bregman‘s free agency, has left the Red Sox without much proven slug in their lineup. A reunion with Bregman would check that box. As would signing Alonso, who could split time at first base and DH with Casas if Boston were to keep him.

Do the Red Sox have the appetite for both free agents? Trading Devers moved $29.1 million off the competitive balance tax payroll for each of the next eight years. The Red Sox had approximately $98 million of their relatively modest $201 million CBT payroll come off the books after the season. Their 2026 payroll is projected to include more than $50 million in raises, but Boston is a big-market club with plenty of money to fill its needs.

First base production in 2025: .252/.318/.445, 29 HR, 107 wRC+, 2.0 fWAR

Primary first basemen: Spencer Steer (113 starts), Christian Encarnacion-Strand (25)

Designated hitter production in 2025: .240/.313/.407, 21 HR, 96 wRC+, -0.2 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: Gavin Lux (57 starts), Austin Hays (38), Miguel Andujar (20), Tyler Stephenson (17), Steer (16)

The Reds finished 14th in the majors in runs scored, but their collective 92 wRC+, a metric that adjusts for park factors and league context, ranked 24th. The Reds know there’s room for improvement playing half of their games at Great American Ball Park, a hitter’s haven, so they’re seeking to strengthen their offense.

First base and DH aren’t obvious needs. Spencer Steer clubbed 21 home runs in 146 games. Sal Stewart, who turns 22 next month, will be a bigger part of the calculus after posting a 121 OPS+ in his first 18 career games. But Alonso resides on another level. As does Schwarber, a Cincinnati-area native.

Now, the money part. Signing either slugger would require the largest free agent contract in franchise history; the current high mark is the two four-year, $64 million deals given to Nick Castellanos and Mike Moustakas in 2020. The Reds are estimated to carry a $120 million CBT payroll for next season after finishing with a $143 million payroll in 2025, their highest since 2021. That projection includes expected raises. If investing in a premier free agent is too rich — or if they all simply decide to play elsewhere — the Reds could land a cheaper alternative in the trade market by dealing from their starting rotation depth.

First base production in 2025: .262/.351/.479, 32 HR, 128 wRC+, 3.9 fWAR

Primary first basemen: Bryce Harper (130 starts)

Designated hitter production in 2025: .238/.362/.566, 57 HR, 152 wRC+, 5.1 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: Kyle Schwarber (154 starts)

With Bryce Harper at first base, Alonso probably would only make sense for the Phillies if they do not re-sign Schwarber — the best designated hitter in the majors this side of Shohei Ohtani. But Phillies owner John Middleton isn’t afraid to spend money, and the team could make both Alonso and Schwarber work by moving Harper back to the outfield. Offensively, Alonso’s right-handed bat makes sense, since the Phillies are expected to move on from Nick Castellanos, catcher J.T. Realmuto is a free agent, and Alec Bohm is a candidate for a trade.

First base production in 2025: .246/.323/.411, 18 HR, 103 wRC+, 1.3 fWAR

Primary first basemen: Spencer Horwitz (93 starts), Enmanuel Valdez (22)

Designated hitter production in 2025: .238/.328/.390, 19 HR, 98 wRC+, 0.0 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: Andrew McCutchen (120 starts), Bryan Reynolds (34)

This is a long shot, but the Pirates want to spend money on upgrading their offense to complement a strong pitching staff headlined by Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes. Like the A’s last winter in their quest to upgrade their starting rotation, that could require overpaying for an impact bat. The price of doing business.

First base production in 2025: .243/.310/.369, 14 HR, 92 wRC+, 0.6 fWAR

Primary first basemen: Coby Mayo (67 starts), Ryan Mountcastle (50), Ryan O’Hearn (39)

Designated hitter production in 2025: .221/.296/.380, 22 HR, 90 wRC+, -0.5 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: Mountcastle (33 starts), O’Hearn (31), Adley Rutschman (18), Jordan Westburg (16), Tyler O’Neill (13)

At the GM meetings, Orioles general manager Mike Elias said he wanted to add a power hitter, preferably an outfielder, this offseason. Acquiring Taylor Ward for right-hander Grayson Rodriguez on Tuesday checked that box. But they could always add more slug and Alonso would give them plenty.

Designated hitter production in 2025: .282/.354/.484, 34 HR, 133 wRC+, 3.6 fWAR

Primary designated hitters: George Springer (80 starts), Anthony Santander (30), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (24)

This fit isn’t clean, but the Blue Jays could lose the right-handed-hitting Bo Bichette in free agency this winter and Alonso could serve as a replacement. The Blue Jays expressed interest in Alonso last winter, but that was when Guerrero’s future was very uncertain. We’re not even going to bother listing first base as a possibility for Alonso in Toronto because that’s Guerrero’s job for a very long time. Springer enjoyed a resurgent season primarily as Toronto’s DH, so he would have to move back to the outfield to make room for Alonso.

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$400 million extension, blockbuster trade or let it ride? MLB insiders break down Tigers’ Tarik Skubal options

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November 22, 2025

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0 million extension, blockbuster trade or let it ride? MLB insiders break down Tigers' Tarik Skubal options

  • Kiley McDanielNov 20, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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    • ESPN MLB Insider
    • Kiley McDaniel covers MLB prospects, the MLB Draft and more, including trades and free agency.
    • Has worked for three MLB teams.
      • Co-author of Author of ‘Future Value’

After three seasons with a face-of-the-franchise-type superstar to headline the winter, there is no Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani or Juan Soto in the 2025-26 free agent class. But there is still one player whose potential availability could rock the offseason ahead: Tarik Skubal.

Why would the Detroit Tigers possibly move their ace on the heels of his second straight American League Cy Young Award and the team’s second consecutive postseason appearance?

Quite simply, because keeping Skubal in Detroit is going to become very expensive, very soon. The 28-year-old left-hander will enter the final year of his contract in 2026 before he is scheduled to reach free agency after the season. If he does hit the market next winter, Skubal has a chance of surpassing Los Angeles Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s record $325 million contract, and he could even become baseball’s first $400 million pitcher.

With Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris facing a decision that will shape the future of the franchise — and impact all of MLB — we talked with 11 industry insiders about what Detroit should do this offseason, broken into three main options.

1. Trade Skubal this winter

This was the least-popular option among our panel and one rival executive explained why.

“The whole reason you do all this is to start a season with a potential contender that has an ace. You can’t throw that away before the season starts. How long will it take to get here again?”

Some panelists hemmed and hawed about how much a team would have to overpay to get Detroit to consider a trade, believing an offer that included a young starting pitcher with front-line potential would be enough to start internal conversations — but nobody could get themselves logically to advocate for a deal unless something completely illogical was offered. And that type of deal increasingly doesn’t happen in modern baseball.

If the Tigers were to trade Skubal for anything less than a gobsmacking return, it would likely mean their competitive window would be tighter — and it would be hard to call Detroit a contender without Skubal next season. Dealing away a player of his caliber would label the Tigers a small-market team, at least by mindset, and bring into question whether they would find themselves in this situation again as other star players approach free agency. It’s much easier to push some, but not all, of their chips to the middle for the upcoming season and see what they can do with Skubal leading the way. Who knows when the next opportunity will come?

When I asked these sources what the Tigers should do, they seemed unsure about how Detroit was viewing the situation but leaned toward believing the Tigers would keep Skubal going into next season. That said, knowing what the market will bear is what Harris likes to do, so the drumbeat of Skubal being available in the right deal — or at least in the sense that Detroit would listen before hanging up — will likely continue.

2. Keep Skubal, but trade him at the deadline if the season doesn’t go as planned

In the event things go sideways during the first half of the 2026 season, everyone on our panel agreed that this was the right move. Defining what “going sideways” means with the expanded playoffs is hard, but battling for a wild-card spot around the trade deadline was where the gray area began for our panelists.

“You cannot, under any circumstances, hold Skubal through the trade deadline and miss the playoffs. That would be a catastrophe,” said one agent.

The haul would still be formidable for a rental deal — back-of-the-envelope math says two prospects ranking later in the top 100 or one elite young player, roughly speaking — but also because the offers would have to clear the bar of Detroit receiving a compensation pick just after the first round to even be considered, as that’s what the Tigers would get if Skubal walked in free agency (under the current free agency system).

Another rival executive has an informed theory on Harris’ focus: “He has his eyes set on 2027 and 2028 as his prime contending years.” If things go well in 2026, the window would expand to include it as well. Top prospects Kevin McGonigle and Max Clark, the No. 2 and No. 6 prospects in the sport, could be core players as soon as the second half of 2026, so aiming for things to really take off in 2027 is logical.

Opinions vary on whether Skubal would fetch more this winter or at the deadline because it’s hard to project how desperate a contender could hypothetically be at the deadline versus what that team would offer to get an entire season of Skubal plus a first-round pick when he walks. It’s safe to assume the return would likely be a bit less at the deadline.

3. Keep Skubal no matter what, try to extend him and take the draft pick if he ends up leaving

This would be a bold move in the era of the asset value-focused approach that so many teams are taking now. If Skubal were to walk in free agency, the compensation would likely be a draft pick in the 30s the following summer — and that’s it. That type of pick is valued at roughly $8-10 million of surplus value, depending on your source.

There is more value that would come before that for Detroit, but it’s hard to quantify. The Tigers would get another title run with the reigning back-to-back AL Cy Young winner and more time to convince him to stay in Detroit. Maybe that combination could make magic and both sides could land on a deal before he hits free agency. Skubal has said he wants to stay in Detroit, so you can’t rule it out. Another rival executive thinks Harris is focused on how to make this happen. “[Harris] will never believe he can’t sign Skubal.”

That being said, Skubal being represented by Scott Boras makes it unlikely he will sign a deal without at least testing the market, as Boras typically advises clients to hit free agency.

There’s one more variable, though, that is unique to the timing of Skubal’s free agency: the expected labor strife next winter, with the current CBA expiring on Dec. 1, 2026. It’s unlikely Boras wants Skubal to be on the market through a labor stoppage that would leave him potentially signing right before spring training after some teams have spent their available cash and with the economic model of the game potentially changing in a way that hurts Skubal’s market. One source said the CBA complication moves the odds that Skubal signs an extension before free agency from 0% to 10%.

The last time there was a labor stoppage hanging over free agency, we saw a frenzy of late-November deals before the Dec. 1 lockout. A similar quicker free agent process that ends with Skubal signing around Thanksgiving would give Detroit a slight leg up, given the familiarity and exclusive negotiating window before free agency, relative to a protracted, winter-long bidding war.

The contract marks to beat are Yamamoto’s $325 million guarantee that is the most ever for pitchers and Max Fried’s $218 million guarantee that is tops among left-handers all-time. Both of those contracts were landed by agencies other than Boras Corp., and setting precedents is a large part of how top agencies market themselves to potential nine-figure clients.

It’s also worth noting Skubal had Tommy John surgery in college and flexor tendon surgery in 2022, which are factors to consider when projecting a long-term deal in free agency.

Are Harris and the Tigers likely to win a straight bidding war with a precedent-setting guarantee? No, but if they can offer a shorter deal at an AAV record with opt-outs, they would at least have a path, albeit a narrow one, to keeping their ace.

The real issue for Detroit is their payroll. They finished last season with a $155 million competitive balance tax (CBT) payroll figure, over $90 million below the first CBT tax threshold. If Skubal will be getting an AAV in the $30 millions or even the low $40 millions, can the Tigers really justify giving a quarter of their payroll to one player? Would Harris do that, or would signing Skubal be part of a larger move to a payroll number that can justify fitting Skubal in there as the Tigers see their peak competitive window opening? If McGonigle and Clark show up late in 2026 and look like future stars, that won’t bump the payroll, but it could make the Tigers look more competitive going forward and that could help their long-term case to Skubal, as well.

This logic — if things go well in 2026, the Tigers will contend and hold onto Skubal through the season — is also why another executive mused on Detroit’s options if it traded Skubal at the deadline. “You could still trade [Skubal] and then sign him back long-term, but I can’t imagine the series of events where that would actually happen.”

There’s also the reading of the tea leaves for this winter. Some sources mentioned Detroit is targeting pitching depth early in free agency. Is that to backfill for a potential Skubal trade? A deal now or at the deadline? Or just to create depth for a title run like all contending teams need? Or to create leverage/depth so they have maximum optionality for all of 2026? You can see what you want to see when it comes to the Rorschach test that is the team-building conundrum of the winter.

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Records: WMU police called twice to aid Kneeland

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November 22, 2025

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Records: WMU police called twice to aid Kneeland

  • Anthony Olivieri

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    Anthony Olivieri

    ESPN Staff Writer

      Anthony Olivieri is a staff writer for ESPN. He has a degree in communications with a concentration in journalism from Marist College. He’s been with ESPN since 2012.

  • Elizabeth Merrill

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    Elizabeth Merrill

    ESPN Senior Writer

      Elizabeth Merrill is a senior writer for ESPN. She previously wrote for The Kansas City Star and The Omaha World-Herald.

Nov 21, 2025, 03:26 PM ET

Western Michigan University police were twice called to perform welfare checks on Marshawn Kneeland while he played for the school, including by coaches who worried about him possessing a gun, according to records obtained by ESPN.

Kneeland, a defensive end for the Dallas Cowboys, died Nov. 6 of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in Frisco, Texas. He was 24. The documents obtained by ESPN via an open-records request show that there were concerns about his mental health as early as 2020.

One incident, in June 2023, came 10 months before Dallas picked him in the second round of the NFL draft. Western Michigan coach Lance Taylor and then-defensive coordinator Lou Esposito called police with a “concern that [Kneeland] recently separated from his girlfriend” and that they “wanted to make sure he was mentally fit to possess a firearm,” according to a campus police report.

“After speaking with Kneeland, he voluntarily turned the firearm into WMUPD for safekeeping until cleared by a counselor,” the officer wrote.

Twelve days later, Kneeland retrieved his gun from police after obtaining a letter from a social worker at the Western Michigan Sindecuse Health Center stating that Kneeland was examined and determined not to be a threat to himself or others, according to the report.

Taylor and Esposito did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment Friday. “WMU’s football program and our greater community are heartbroken by the loss of Marshawn,” according to a statement from the Western Michigan athletic department provided to ESPN. “He was deeply loved and cared for here. Bronco Athletics provides holistic support for all our student-athletes including mental health services with professional counselors. Marshawn made use of those mental health resources during his time at WMU. The entire football staff was proud of Marshawn, who grew to become a captain and a leader in the program, and ultimately a graduate of Western Michigan University.” The counselor named in the report did not respond to messages from ESPN.

In another incident in September 2020, an unnamed friend of Kneeland’s called 911 to express concern for his well-being, and police found Kneeland near train tracks in Kalamazoo.

“Kneeland told me he was sitting across the tracks in hopes a train would run him over to end his life,” the responding officer wrote in a report. “Kneeland told me life overall and the lack of playing football at WMU had him feeling down. He told me he had been feeling like this for a while. When asked to clarify how long he felt that way, he did not answer. Kneeland said he does not see a therapist or take any medication for his mental health crisis.”

The report states that Kneeland did not want to seek medical help but that Kent County sheriff’s deputies who responded to the scene sent Kneeland to Borgess Hospital (now Beacon Kalamazoo). The report does not state when or why Kneeland was released from the hospital.

A Cowboys spokesperson declined to answer questions Friday about whether the team had been aware of Kneeland’s previous incidents.

Kneeland’s cousin Nicole Kneeland-Woods, a family spokesperson, told ESPN that she had no knowledge of those incidents. “None at all,” she said.

On Thursday, Kneeland’s family held a private memorial service in Wyoming, Michigan. Kneeland-Woods said it was invitation-only, with family, close friends and some of his coaches.

“Right now for us, it’s just trying to move forward,” she said. “Now we can really start the healing process.”

Texas police found Kneeland’s body in the early morning of Nov. 6 after he had evaded officers during a traffic pursuit, crashed his car and fled on foot. According to a report released Friday by the Texas Department of Public Safety, a trooper saw Kneeland’s car speeding down the highway, sometimes traveling more than 145 miles per hour and making “several unsafe lane changes.” The trooper ultimately lost sight of Kneeland’s car. While officers searched for Kneeland, they said they received information that he had expressed “suicidal ideations.”

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